Spruce up your wardrobe, sustainably, with Zulugrass from the Leakey Collection

It’s the middle of fall, and some days the San Francisco weather proves to be more gloomy and gray than sunny. Bring a little sunshine to your wardrobe with vibrant and versatile Zulugrass strands from the Leakey Collection.

Zulugrass strands are comprised of dyed Zulugrass beads—actual Kenyan grass which grows naturally strong and cored—hand-blown Czech glass beads and high quality Japanese glass beads, all strung on elastic. Fun fact: the elastic used in the Zulugrass strands is the same elastic formulation used for the film Spiderman. Talk about versatile.

Zulugrass strands come in over 80 vibrant color combinations, which means there’s bound to be a piece to suit your mood and outfit. What’s more, the strands are incredibly sturdy, meaning they’re great for twisting and rolling into necklaces, bracelets, hair ties, and just about anything else you can think of. Who doesn’t love customizable accessories?

Zulugrass is the flagship product of the Leakey Collection, which was founded in 2002 by Katy and Philip Leakey as an economic solution and source of revenue for Maasai women. A drought struck Kenya in 2001, which left Maasai women and children without their men, without cattle, and with minimal money for food, medical expenses and housing. The Leakeys began to pay the Maasai women to create their jewelry collections, which ultimately became a sustainable revenue source for the women. As Philip Leakey explains: "we tried to design a system that doesn't interrupt the lifestyles of the Maasai people. We tried to make our business fit their lifestyle rather than have them change their lifestyle fit our business."

In addition to being a source of income for Massai women, 5% of the profits from the Leakey’s jewelry collections go to supporting infrastructure in the Rift Valley of Kenya.

The lightweight, sustainably produced Zulugrass strands can be purchased individually, or multi-strand. Want to get your hands a few to create your own perfectly bohemian look? Purcahse online at www.leakeycollection.com, or, in store at:

• Karibu Kenya
  50 Post Street, Level 2
  San Francisco, CA 94104
  Phone: 415.391.3181
  www.karibukenya.com
• Global Exchange
  2840 College Avenue
  Berkeley, CA 94705
  Phone: 510 548 0370
  www.globalexchange.org  
• Terrestra
  3533 California St.
  San Francisco, CA 94118
  Phone: 415-221-4438
  www.terrestra.com
• Flower Power
  11275 California 1, Point Reyes Sta, CA 94956
• The Gardener
  2127 Fourth Street
  Berkeley, CA 94710
  Phone: 510 548 4580